Brittany Navarra, Dustin Robert Gran: Satanic Killers Of Krista Pike In Madera, California, Subject Of ‘She Made Me Do It’ On Oxygen
Brittany Navarra, the 18-year-old California teen who had her friend, Dustin Robert Gran, kill her ex-boyfriend’s fiance, Krista Pike, will have her crime featured on Snapped: She Made Me Do It. In the Oxygen episode titled, “Brittany Navarra,” a young man arrives at his home to find his girlfriend and fiancé dead in a pool of blood, making himself look like the obvious suspect. When police sink their teeth deep into the case, they find a tangled web, a love for Satanism, and a sinister plot fueled by jealousy to get rid of a new romantic rival.
January 2008: Madera, California — A Horrible Discovery
Detectives were called to a murder scene inside a West Madera home, where the half-naked body of a white teen female was found dead in a pool of blood. The victim was identified as Krista Rae Pike. An autopsy performed on Krista Pike concluded that she had been struck over the head at least five times, and she had been stabbed with a kitchen knife. Her boyfriend and fiancé, Thomas Hollier, and his father had found the body when they returned to the house, according to the Daily Mail.
Krista had been alone at the Madera home for most of the day, spending time watching movies. It was a devastating scene for Thomas and his father, who had found the body. They couldn’t figure out what exactly happened to her. Had someone broken into the home? Was it a robbery? And if not, who was this person who hated Krista Pike so much that they would kill her in such a brutal manner.
Hidden Jealousy And Simmering Tensions Bubble To The Surface
No one knew the answer at the time, since Krista Pike didn’t have any known enemies. It seemed that everyone who knew the smiling teen enjoyed being in her company. As police probed further, they called Thomas Hollier in for questioning to determine if they were having any problems in their relationship. Thomas stated that they had broken up a time earlier, and that he had started dating another woman, but eventually went back to his relationship with Krista Pike, which didn’t set well with 16-year-old Britanny Navarra, who had fallen madly in love with Thomas.
This is a fantastic idea!
There's a push to get Madera's new elementary school named in honor of Krista Pike. @ABC30 pic.twitter.com/UibHaYPdt0— Corin Hoggard (@corinhoggard) January 22, 2016
Thomas Hollier also told police that Britanny Navarra had been bitter and angry over the break-up but eventually they all became friends. The “all” included Thomas Hollier and his new fiancé, Krista Pike. In fact, they had been getting along so well, that Britanny Navarra and her new boyfriend were coming to Thomas Hollier’s home, where he lived with Krista, to hang out. They even double dated on at least one occasion.
Soon a deadly plot came into focus once detectives started taking a closer look at Britanny Navarra. A search of her phone records proved that she had been in contact with another teen named Dustin Robert Gran. Police took the case to the public and asked for help recovering a phone or any other evidence materials that may have been discarded in a field. Once police were able to recover Dustin Gran’s broken phone, it revealed photos of the crime scene, including a photo of Krista Pike’s bloody body.
The investigation further revealed that Brittany had begged her friend, 19-year-old Dustin Gran, to kill her rival, Krista Pike, so that she could have Thomas Hollier all to herself. In order to do that, Brittany Navarra hatched out a plan to befriend Thomas and Krista to gain their confidence so they could learn the layout of the home. Then, they started making frequent visits to the home, until Gran caught Krista Pike at the house alone. It was then that he carried out the most brutal murder imaginable. Dustin Gran told police that Britanny Navarra made him do it.
“About me well lets see im not your average every day teenager from my personality to my out look on life it different.I’m a very friendly person if you keep on my good side i am very demonic at times but i also am very sweet and sensitive.i love some sport like hockey, tennis, rugby, and water polo. hmmm lets see what else is there to tell. im very very bubbly ive been told and do things on the spur of the moment sometimes to see what others will do. um i have writers block right now so if theres anything else you’d like to know don’t be afraid to ask Who I’d like to meet: who i would like to meet no famous people really as for relationship im into tallness, blond or black hair(long liked the most), colored eyes, great personality, i love a lil demonic side in a guy : ], funny, sweet (to me at least), not scared to take risks, loves the mountians… not much of a city boy.”
The WebSleuth page had a great deal of information about this case, such as some links to a page that had a slew of comments from the locals who knew Brittany Navarra and Dustin Gran. There were also some links to the cached pages of the killers. All of those pages have disappeared with the exception of Krista Pike’s MySpace page. Some information from those pages is still available at MyDeathSpace.
At trial, Brittany Navarra showed absolutely no emotion and often looked as if she couldn’t wait to exit the courtroom. Krista Pike’s mother brought her daughter’s ashes to the court during the sentencing phase. But Brittany seemed unmoved.
Britanny Navarra and Dustin Gran were sentenced to life in prison, even though most of the community believed they should have been sentenced to death. Watch this week’s Snapped: She Made Me Do It, which airs tonight, at 9/8 p.m. Central.
*Note: Krista Pike, the victim, is not to be confused with the notorious killer Christa Pike. Last week, Oxygen debuted the story of Cheryl Gasper.
[Image via B Calkins/ShutterStock]
